The Anaerobic Aspects of Resistance Training

The Anaerobic Aspects of Resistance Training
By Bruce W Craig
NSCA Hot Topics Series

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INTRODUCTION
Resistance training has become the common term to describe exercise involving any form of resistance, be it free weights, machines, elastic bands, pulley systems, or body weight as used in some exercise equipment. The lifting of weights comes under this broad umbrella and can be separated into a variety of categories (11) but most weight exercises can be performed for a variety of sets and repetitions and resistances, with somewhat different outcomes. There are some basic differences between training for strength and hypertrophy (muscle size) compared to training for power (explosive strength) which is a major component of most sports. However, all forms of resistance training rely on anaerobic metabolism for their energy needs. The purpose of this brief review is to explain how anaerobic metabolism supplies that energy and how these forms of training differ in their usage.

MUSCLE TRANSITION
Strength is based on the ability to produce force, and the amount generated is dependent on the motor unit (neuron and muscle fibers it innervates) recruitment pattern that is established. Newton’s second law of physics defines force as F = ma, with m representing mass and a standing for acceleration. Mass is represented by the workload or the amount of weight moved, and acceleration involves the speed at which the weight is moved. These two components of force set the neural recruitment pattern by determining the type and number of motor units to be used, and their rate of activation.

The neurons of motor units stimulate either type I or type II muscle fibers. Type I fibers (slow twitch) contain numerous mitochondria, require oxygen to function, produce low to moderate amounts of force, and are fatigue resistant. These characteristics make them ideal for supplying the bulk of the energy when not much force is required, but must be maintained for long periods of time, such as when standing. Type II fibers (fast twitch) on the other hand, have fewer mitochondria, are more anaerobic in nature, and produce more force than type I fibers. However, they do fatigue more rapidly than type I, and come in two varieties; IIa and IIx (formally termed IIb) (2,15). The IIa form of these fast twitch fibers have the ability to use oxygen to make Adenosine Tri-phosphate (ATP) but have a high dependency on anaerobic forms of metabolism, such as glycogen breakdown which produces lactic acid. Prolonged bouts of high intensity anaerobic training can therefore produce significant amounts of lactic acid (7) in type IIa muscle fibers. The accumulation of lactic acid within the type IIa muscle fibers causes the pH to drop, and leads to fiber fatigue (1). Type IIx fibers are almost purely anaerobic in nature and fatigue even quicker than IIa fibers but become the primary fiber of choice during maximal force production and when IIa fibers become fatigued (2,15). Several studies have shown that repeated bouts of resistance exercise can transform IIx fibers into IIa fibers (10, 13,16,). The transition of IIx fibers into IIa fibers is an important part of the adaptation that resistance training produces and is discussed in more detail in the subsequent sections.

STRENGTH AND HYPERTROPHY ADAPTATIONS
In training to optimize hypertrophy, sets are typically performed at 60-75% of the 1RM (8-12 repetitions), and have a shorter work to rest ratio (1-1.5 min). Optimizing strength involves training at higher loads (80-90% 1RM) with fewer reps (4 to 6) and a longer work:rest ratio (2-3 min) (14). Although not obvious by the set and rep combinations, there is a lot of overlap between the physiological adaptations to hypertrophy and strength training, such that one still increases strength somewhat with hypertrophy-focused training and one still increases size somewhat with strength-focused training. Te overall effect of these forms of training is that they push the muscles to the point of fatigue. Fatigue is defined as the in- ability to maintain force, and as indicated above can increase type IIa fiber numbers. The work of several investigators (10, 13,16) has shown that muscles of untrained individuals contain hybrid muscle fiber types in addition to the type I, type IIa, and type IIx fibers, the hybrids being muscle fibers that are going through a transition from type IIa to I (9) or from type IIx to IIa (10,13,16). The muscles of highly trained athletes, on the other hand, contain few hybrid fibers (2). Te increase in IIa fiber number induced by strength and hypertrophy training enhances the anaerobic capacity of muscles by forcing them to adapt to repeated bouts of exercise that depend on anaerobic metabolism (6,12).

Although there are no definitive studies that have measured the enzymatic alterations that resistance training induces, the work of MacDougall et al. (8) does indicate the type of change that can occur. The subjects in this investigation under- went 7 weeks of sprint training on a cycle ergometer. Training started with four 30 sec maximal exercise bouts (Wingate protocol) with 2-4 min recovery between them, and the subjects trained three days per week. By the end of the 7 weeks they completed ten 30 sec rides three times per week. They found that the subjects’ peak power, total work and VO2max was significantly increased by training, and attributed it to the significant increases in both aerobic (malate dehydrogenase, succinate dehydrogenase, and citrate synthase) and anaerobic (phosphofructokinase and hexokinase) enzyme activity. It might seem odd that the training improved both forms of metabolism until the accumulation of lactic acid and its ability to induce fatigue is taken into account. The primary effect of the muscle fiber transition is that IIx fibers, that are almost entirely anaerobic in nature, become IIa fibers that can use both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism. Therefore, the stress represented by repeated bouts of high intensity exercise converts the enzymatic composition of the IIx fibers to a IIa form of metabolism, and increases both oxidative and non-oxidative capability of the muscle. This enables the muscle to use a greater amount of glucose and/or glycogen with less build-up of lactic acid. This was demonstrated in a resistance training study conducted by Keeler (6).

POWER ADAPTATIONS
Power forms of lifting are more explosive in nature than strength and hypertrophy training. Although the sets and repetitions and rest periods are similar to that of strength-focused training, the amount of weight lifted can be as low as only body weight, up to about 40% of the 1RM, except in the case of the Olympic lifts, which are performed at 70-80% 1RM. Te lifter is required to exert maximal power to get the weight moving, and the only way that can be done is by training the nervous system to recruit as many type IIa fibers as possible. However, before an individual can train explosively they have to build a strength base.

Acceleration enables the establishment of movement velocity (speed) but is directly related to the rate of force development (RFD) generated with the initiation of movement. In strength and hypertrophy the lifter concentrates on the movement patterns of concentric and eccentric phase of the lift and tries to maintain a steady rhythm. The lift can even be performed slowly to maximize the fatiguing aspects of the exercise (3). Explosive lifts, on the other hand, are dependent on the neural recruitment of large numbers of type IIa muscle fibers to get the weight moving as quickly as possible. Therefore, any improvement in the RFD is a very important aspect of training.

Hakkinen et al. (4) demonstrated that strength and hypertrophy training can enhance peak strength but it does not affect the RFD, whereas power training does significantly improve the RFD. Although the anaerobic breakdown of glycogen (7) is used to some degree during an explosive lift, the primary energy source is ATP and the regeneration of ATP via the breakdown of creatine phosphate (CP). It is what gives the lifter the ability to explode and is why the rest period between lifts is longer. The extra time is needed to re-establish the ATP and CP stores of the muscle fibers. To date no one has examined the ATP and CP turnover in power forms of lifting but these factors have been examined with sprint training. Harmer et al. (5) sprint trained athletes for 7 weeks using a protocol that was similar to that used by MacDougal et al. (8) and found that the rate of anaerobic ATP usage following training was approximately half of what it was before training, whereas CP turnover was the same. They did not address this issue in their discussion but the data implies that the biomechanical improvements (better neural recruitment) might be responsible for the decline in ATP usage.

Anaerobic metabolism is dependent on the percentage of type IIa muscle fibers within the body. Tat percentage can be altered with training. Untrained individuals have a higher percentage of undifferentiated fibers (hybrids) than highly trained athletes. Resistance training is an effective way to enhance the muscle profile and increases the number of fast twitch fibers (type IIa) it contains. Although type I muscle fibers can increase in diameter with training it is the type IIa fibers that undergo the greatest hypertrophy with resistance training and are the basis for the increase in strength that is achieved from this form of training (2,15). The added benefit is that the anaerobic capacity also increases due to an enzymatic conversion that occurs with muscle fiber transition. Although power training depends more on ATP and CP than glycogen for energy needs it still requires a high percentage of type IIa muscle fibers. Once this fiber type is established with resistance training, power forms of training will enable an athlete to maximize the neural recruitment of type IIa fibers

REFERENCES
• Craig BW: Does muscle pH affect performance? Strength and Conditioning Journal 26:24 – 25, 2004
• Fleck SJ, Kraemer WJ: Designing Resistance Training Programs. Champaign, IL, Human Kinetics, 2004
• Greer BK: Superslow Training. NSCA Hot Topics Series, 2006
• Hakkinen K, Komi PV, Alen M: Effect of explosive-type strength training on isometric force- and relaxation-time, electromyographic and muscle fiber characteristics on leg extensor muscles. Acta Physiologica Scanainavica 125:587 – 600, 1985
• Harmer AR, McKenna MJ, Sutton JR, Snow RJ, Ruell PA, Booth J, Tompson MW, Mackay NA, Stathis CG, Crameri RM, Carey MF, Eager DM: Skeletal muscle metabolic and ionic adaptations during intense exercise following sprint training in humans. Journal of Applied Physiology 89:1793 – 1803, 2000
• Keeler LK, Finkelstein LH, Miller W, Fernhall B: Early-phase adaptations of traditional-speed vs. superslow resistance training on strength and aero- bic capacity in sedentary individuals. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 15:301 – 314, 2001
• Kraemer WJ, Noble BJ, Culver BW, Clark MJ: Physiologic responses to heavy-resistance exercise with short rest periods. International Journal of Sports Medicine 8:247 – 252, 1987
• MacDougal JD, Hicks AL, MacDonald JR, McKelvie RS, Green HJ, Smith KM: Muscle performance and enzymatic adaptations to sprint interval training. Journal of Applied Physiology 84:2138 – 2142, 1998
• Saltin B, Gollnick PD: Skeletal muscle adaptability: Significance for metabolism and preformance. In Handbook of Physiology
• Peachy L, Adrian R, Gerzer SR, Eds. Bethesda, MD, American Physiological Society, 1983, p. 555 – 631
• Staron B, Malicky ES, Leonardi MJ, Falkel JE, Hagerman FC, Dudley GA: Muscle hypertrophy and fast fiber type conversions in heavy resistance- trained women. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology. 60:71 – 79, 1990
• Stone MH, Pierce KC, Sands WA, Stone ME: Weightlifting: A brief overview. Strength and Conditioning Journal 28:50 – 66, 2006
• Tavino L, Bowers CJ, Archer CB: Effects of basketball on aerobic, anaerobic capacity, and body composition of male college players. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 9:75 – 77, 1995
• Trappe SW, Williamson D, Godard MP, Porter D, Rowden G, Costill DL: Effect of resistance training on single muscle fiber contractile function in older men. Journal of Applied Physiology 89:143 – 152, 2000
• Triplett NT: Specificity for Sport. NSCA Hot Topics Series, 2006
• Wilmore JH, Costill DL: Physiology of Sport and Exercise. Champaign, IL, Human Kinetics, 2004
• Williamson DL, Godard MP, Porter D, Costill DL, Trappe SW: Maintenance of whole muscle strength and size following resistance training in older men. Journal of Gerontology: Biological Sciences. 27A:B138 – B143, 2002

The Use of Sport Psychology to Improve Sport Performance

The Use of Sport Psychology to Improve Sport Performance
Daniel Kirschenbaum, Ph.D. Director, Center for Behavioral Medicine, Professor, Northwestern University Medical School
Chicago, Illinois
Sean McCann, Ph.D. U.S. Olympic Committee, Sport Science and Technology Division, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Andrew Meyers, Ph.D. University of Memphis, Department of Psychology, Memphis, Tennessee
Jean Williams, Ph.D. University of Arizona, Department of Exercise & Sport Science, Tucson, Arizona
From http://www.gssiweb.com/ArticlesUpload/2007410113639453.pdf

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Introduction
Sport psychology is the science of behavior applied to exercise and sport participation. Increasing numbers of athletes and coaches are using sport psychologists to help them gain a personal and competitive edge--to manage stress and anxiety more effectively, improve concentration and motivation, increase confidence, and promote better communication. This field has been percolating for 70 years, yet many people still think of it as commonsensical mind games. The Gatorade Sports Science Institute convened a panel of four of the leading experts on sport psychology to help clarify the meaning of this important discipline, describe its recent history, and project its future.

How has the use of sport psychology changed among elite athletes over the last 20 years?
Kirschenbaum: Sport psychology has grown remarkably in recent years. During the past decade, two new scientific journals and two
major national organizations that address the area of sport psychology have emerged. Parallel increases have been apparent in the
number of books on the topic and in the growth of involvement of sport psychologists with Olympic teams. As further evidence of
the increased popularity of the field, a recent article noted that one-third of touring professional golfers are currently using sport psychologists.
Five to ten years ago, few professional golfers utilized a psychologist.

Williams: Twenty years ago most elite athletes had never heard of sport psychology and gave little or no thought to training the mental side of their games. Many of these athletes possessed excellent psychological skills, but the development of these skills occurred largely by chance and without conscious recognition. For the vast majority of athletes, efforts to improve performance consisted only of looking for advances in physical training and conditioning, biomechanics, and equipment. In contrast, all of today’s elite athletes probably have heard of sport psychology. In ever increasing numbers they are seeking the services of sports psychologists as the “competitive edge” to finish a step ahead of the competition.

McCann: I believe that the most dramatic changes have occurred in the last 10 years, with the development of a “common language”
of sport psychology. This language accompanies a specific set of mental skills for sport that are definable, understandable, and teachable. Athletes in the 1980’s used to come to my door and say, “I’ve heard that sport psychology can help athletes.” Now athletes are informed consumers who state, for example, “I’m having trouble with competition anxiety, and I was hoping that you could help me make a relaxation tape.” Elite athletes and coaches do not always understand the theoretical underpinnings of the science of sport psychology, but they are familiar with the sport specific applications of that science, and these applications are in great demand.

Meyers: For many, the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles served as an introduction to applied sport psychology. The
use of sport psychology programs by Soviet and East German athletes and coaches focused a great deal of attention on this emerging field. As some of the other respondents have stated, there are few elite athletes at the present time who do not have at least a rudimentary awareness of the area. The United States Olympic Committee includes a sport psychologist in its Sports Science division and has encouraged the national governing bodies of the various Olympic sports to include sport psychology in their athletes’ training programs. Increasingly, sport psychology
has become as common a component of elite athletic preparation as good nutrition and proper medical care.

What is the current state of the science that supports the use of psychological interventions to improve sport performance?

Williams: Individual variation certainly exists. However, a review of peak performance literature clearly indicates that successful athletes tend to have higher levels of self-confidence, a more task-oriented focus of concentration, a lesser likelihood of becoming distracted, a greater ability to keep anxiety at facilitative levels, a more positive preoccupation with sport (imagery and thoughts), and more determination and commitment compared to less successful athletes. These psychological characteristics can be developed through appropriate psychological interventions. Using meta-analytic procedures, reviewers of intervention research found support for mental rehearsal (imagery), cognitive restructuring interventions, goal setting, and relaxation interventions to improve athletic performance in diverse sports such as golf, karate, skiing, tennis, and baseball.

Meyers: Serious evaluative research in this area goes back only about 25 years, but there is now a good deal of evidence to support the use of many of the interventions that Dr. Williams alluded to for athletic performance enhancement. A recent review of the literature that I completed with a colleague, Dr. Jim Whelan, found that contemporary sport psychology interventions are significantly better than control conditions for improving athletic performance. Unfortunately, there are few experimental evaluations of sport psychology interventions using elite athletes. We know that these programs work with recreational through varsity athletes, but we’ve yet to demonstrate the viability of these interventions with national and world class athletes. However, all existing evidence suggests that these interventions would be effective with this population as well.

McCann: I agree with Dr. Meyers. The psychological interventions used in applied sport psychology are typically well-researched cognitive behavioral techniques drawn from applied clinical and counseling psychology. Thus, the interventions are sound. However, there has been a tendency to use college students as subjects in many of the research studies conducted to date. There is a great need for more controlled studies with elite athletes to determine what modifications, if any, would be useful for psychological interventions with elite level performers.

Kirschenbaum: In addition, more follow-up studies are needed to show the extent to which interventions produce long term impact. However, sport psychology interventions hold a great deal of promise; these interventions can produce reliably positive and, in some cases, remarkably positive effects. Several dozen studies clearly indicate that sport psychology interventions lead to improvements in performance compared to control or alternative interventions.

Under what circumstances, if any, can psychological interventions lead to more harm than good for athletes?

McCann: Of course, any intervention can cause harm. Poor coaching, a misdiagnosis by a sports medicine physician, or a trainer who ignores a serious stress fracture are all examples of health professionals using interventions with potentially harmful consequences. Making sure that a sport psychologist has the proper training and credentials (i.e.-membership in the USOC Sport Psychology Registry or certification by the Association of Applied Sport Psychology (AAASP)) is the best guard against harmful intervention. The question can also be interpreted as suggesting that talking about a potentially negative issue can actually “cause” it to occur. For example, a coach might say “why talk about extra pressure at the Olympic Games? Aren’t you just planting a seed?” However, the bottom line for the athletes that I work with is that pressure is real at the
Olympic level, and mentally prepared athletes handle that pressure with the greatest ease. You cannot get very far in sports these days if you pretend that environmental factors don’t exist. Of course, an effective sport psychologist won’t just raise these issues; they will also have potential solutions to each of these challenges.

Meyers: It’s no accident that one of the dictums of medical treatment is “Do no harm.” Any intervention, medical or psychological, can produce harm (as well as benefit), so it is important for a client to be a careful, informed, and assertive consumer of such services. First and foremost, there is no guarantee that the provider of services will do a competent job. The client should expect the provider to lay out an intervention plan that informs the client of what will happen in their professional relationship. This plan should detail the goals of the work and expected performance changes, expected length of the intervention, the duration of each session, and any other requirements such as fees and payment schedules. The client should be free to request periodic updates from the provider on his or her progress, and inquire about the ethical codes
that the provider works under (i.e.-under what circumstances can confidentially be broken?). Not all performance enhancement interventions will result in positive change but an alert and involved athlete-consumer should receive maximum benefit and maximum protection.

Kirschenbaum: Psychological interventions can have a negative impact on performance under certain conditions. For example, some research indicates that focusing on details of a technique when performing complex motor movements can sometimes decrease performance. Having athletes concentrate on how their hands are moving or their swing is taking shape could lead to at least a temporary interference in smooth motor performance. Thus, if a sport psychologist encourages athletes to focus on microscopic aspects of their performance he or she can adversely affect
athletic performance. It may also be harmful for sport psychologists to encourage all athletes to try to attain a certain level of calm before performing. Certain sports and certain movements within sports generally require a higher level of activation. Also, some athletes tend to respond at their best when they are at high levels of activation or arousal. Competent sport psychologists are likely to observe and closely evaluate the effects of their interventions with athletes. If the intervention appears to be doing more harm than good, the psychologist should be able to recognize this, and make adjustments accordingly.

Williams: Employing appropriate interventions at inappropriate times can also adversely affect performance. For example, when good performance is critical and insufficient time exists to learn thought control and relaxation techniques, increasing an athlete’s awareness of dysfunctional thinking or undesirable tension may result in poorer performance. A tennis coach would not ask a player to switch to a two handed backhand a week prior to a major competition; neither should a sport psychologist make major changes in mental skills without allowing appropriate practice time. It goes without saying that unqualified sport psychologists are more likely to make the types of mistakes that lead to poorer performance.

What have been the major barriers to making sport psychology more accessible to athletes?

Meyers: As with any new profession there is often skepticism and resistance. Many elite athletes justifiably feel that they manage the emotional side of their competitive world just fine without outside help. Coaches are often reluctant to give up control, or at least the perception of control over their athletes. And resource-starved administrators must find additional funds to pay for these professional services. Sport psychologists must continue to prove themselves in the sport arena. That’s why research on sport psychology interventions must continue. Athletes, coaches, and administrators will only be completely convinced of the value of these services when the evidence is consistent and indisputable. This means that sport psychologists must work both in the lab and in real-world competitive settings to demonstrate the merits of their efforts. Finally, if these services are worthwhile, then priority must be given to funding these activities. Unfortunately, professionals simply cannot develop without a professional career path, and that means that athletes and sport organizations have to find a way to
support the work of the sport psychologist.

Kirschenbaum: An additional factor is the relatively limited number of well-trained sport psychologists in the United States. There are less than 100 people currently on the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Sport Psychology Registry. There are only about 100 people who are certified by AAASP. These limited numbers of people have limited resources for marketing. Although sport psychologists are distributed around the country, it is difficult for athletes to find them. These barriers are being broken down; however the efforts have been slow and gradual and are not supported by a major public relations push. As Dr. Meyers suggested, the availability of funding for sport psychology research has been limited as well. In addition, competition from other fields has detracted from the growth of this specialty area. For example, psychologists have relatively little control over who attends Olympic events and who works with elite athletes. The control lies more in the hands of the administrators, coaches, and physician groups, and the acceptance of any type of psychological intervention in our culture is still somewhat limited.

McCann: My views are similar to those of Drs. Meyers and Kirschenbaum. The primary barrier, in my opinion, is the discrepancy between the large amount of publicity about the field and the relatively few trained professionals in the field. In many communities, there are no trained sport psychologists, and local athletes are forced to acquire information through reading materials. As more “self-help” type sport psychology books
become available, the average athlete will have access to the basic concepts and language of sport psychology. Of course, going from the general concepts to the specific situation of each athlete will always be facilitated by the presence of a professional.

Williams: I think that unqualified individuals ineffectively practicing sport psychology have also led to the lack of trust and credibility
that some coaches and athletes feel toward the field of sport psychology. To lessen this occurrence, one sport psychology organization
(AAASP) has established criteria for training sport psychologists, and implemented a procedure for certifying consultants. Unfortunately, few individuals within the athletic community know about these efforts. They do not know what to look for when selecting a sport psychologist, how to get lists of qualified individuals, or the variety of services that these individuals might offer. Regardless of the training and education efforts, however, a remaining roadblock is the stigma that many athletes attach to going to a sport psychologist. Education and appropriate exposure might lessen this roadblock.
What do you envision as the future of applied sport psychology over the next ten years?

Williams: Applied sport psychology will continue to grow as an academic discipline and professional practice, but I don’t see it growing as fast as it has in the last ten years. I do envision more theoretical advances and documentation of the efficacy of performance enhancement interventions. Training standards for sport psychologists will increase in rigor and result in greater emphasis on interdisciplinary training and supervised internships. More academic programs will offer courses in applied sport psychology, including courses for coaches and athletic trainers. I
also foresee wider acceptance of the field in the sports medicine and general psychology communities. However, although more athletic departments, National Governing Boards, and professional athletes will use sport psychologists, budgetary constraints will still restrict the potential for employment opportunities.

Kirschenbaum: I believe that we will witness an accelerated growth in applied sport psychology in the next ten years. Public and major athletic organizations will become increasingly aware of what sport psychologists are, how they work, and where to find them. As this occurs, there will be more and more demand for their services. This growth might parallel the increased acceptance of behavioral medicine over the last two decades. What was once a small subspecialty in the field of psychology has become a dominant force in clinical psychology that is represented
in almost every medical school and every major hospital in the United States today. I think that the same will occur with sport psychology. People who are welltrained and knowledgeable in this area are going to become more sought after as their work becomes more familiar to amateur and professional sport organizations. Hopefully, there will be a concomitant increase in research to support, test, and improve the usefulness of these approaches.

McCann: I envision growth as well. Growth in the number of trained professionals. Growth in employment settings for these professionals.
Growth in the scientific knowledge base with elite athletes. Growth in the application of sport psychology principles into areas such as business. I also envision changes in the methodology of sport psychology. Although generalized techniques for enhancing performance will exist, these techniques will become more individualized. The first CD-ROM program for an individualized sport psychology program has been produced,
and the next ten years should bring modifications in these programs so that they may serve as tutorials for athletes and coaches.

Selected Readings
Kirschenbaum, D.S. Mind matters: seven steps to smarter sport performance. Cooper Publishing Group, Indianapolis, IN, 1996 (In press)
Murphy, S.M. (ed.) Sport psychology interventions. Human Kinetics Publishing, Champaign, IL. 1995
Williams, J.M. (ed.) Applied sport psychology: personal growth to peak performance. Mayfield Publishing Co. San Francisco, CA. 1993

This issue of the Roundtable was coordinated and moderated by Daniel Kirschenbaum, Ph.D., Director, Center for Behavioral Medicine, Chicago,
Illinois and Mitchell Kanter, Ph.D., Director, Gatorade Sports Science Institute

Proper Nutrition for Athletes: The Missing Link

Proper Nutrition for Athletes: The Missing Link
By Nancy Clark
From J Exerc Sci Fit, Vol 6, No 2, 130–134, 2008
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Introduction
Nutrition should be an integral part of an athlete’s training program. Yet, in the United States, American athletes and fitness exercisers alike commonly report that they do not eat as well as they should; they admit that nutrition is their missing link. Consequently, they may fail to attain the most benefits from their training programs and their competitive efforts.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the sports nutrition errors commonly made by American athletes who live in a culture where food is considered “fattening”, eating-on-the-run is the norm, and fast foods are a common alternative to home-cooked meals. Given the rapidly changing food culture in China, this information may help Chinese athletes avoid making the same nutritional mistakes.

Missing Link #1: Respect for the Power of a Proper Sports Diet

“Too many athletes show up for training but they don’t show up for meals. They might as well not show up for training.” These words, spoken by a successful collegiate ice hockey coach, are true indeed. Instead of rushing to training sessions and competitions only to show up poorly fueled, busy athletes would be better off taking a few minutes from their training time to fuel properly and be able to perform better.

Solution: Educate and repeatedly remind athletes about the benefits associated with optimal fueling pat- terns, so they understand that eating a proper sports diet will help them reach their performance goals.

Missing Link #2: Sufficient Calories During the Active Part of the Day

The same athletes who show up underfueled for training are generally the ones who undereat nourishing meals during the daytime, only to overeat sweets and treats with little nutritional value in the evening. This pattern fails to support an optimal sports diet and long-term health. Two reasons why athletes undereat during the active part of their day include:
(1) They are “too busy” to eat. Wrong. If they can find time to train, they can also find time to fuel for training.
(2) They want to lose undesired body fat.

To do so, they restrict their calorie intake at breakfast and lunch. Given that the vast majority of female athletes wants to lose about 2.5kg (5lb), calorie restriction is com- mon. In a survey of 425 female collegiate athletes, 43% of the women reported feeling terrified of be- coming overweight, and 22% were extremely preoccupied with food and weight (Beals & Manore 2000). This fear that “food is fattening” certainly deters many weight-conscious athletes from eating optimally.

Solution: Weight-conscious athletes should pay attention to when they eat. The best time to eat is during the active part of the day, so they will have the energy needed to exercise hard. Increased daytime calories reduces the evening appetite, and this can help weight- conscious athletes consume 10–20% fewer calories at the end of the day. They end up losing weight when they are sleeping, instead of when they are trying to train hard.

Missing Link #3: Equal-sized and Regularly Scheduled Meals

Too many American athletes eat in a crescendo, with the biggest meal in the evening. The better plan is to divide their calories evenly throughout the day, eating every 4 hours, so the athletes are always in the process of fueling-up or refueling.

Solution: A sports dietitian can help athletes create a food plan for a balanced sports diet with the appro- priate amount of calories at each meal. For example, a 2400-calorie fueling plan for an active woman (or a dieting man) who trains after work might look like this:


The first three meals provide the energy needed for a strong workout. The last meal provides the nutrients needed to recover from the workout.

Missing Link #4: Beneficial Amount of Dietary Fat

Some athletes eat too much (>35%) of calories from fat, such as butter, oil, salad dressing and fried foods. The fat displaces the carbohydrates needed to optimally fuel muscles and replenish depleted glycogen stores. The athlete who eats a plate filled with fried chicken for dinner is not carbohydrate-loading on rice, potato or pasta! His performance can suffer due to glycogen-depleted muscles.

Other athletes eat too little fat (<20%of>

Missing Link #5: Pre-exercise Fuel


Athletes who believe they have “no time” to eat before their workout need to think again. Eating 100–300 calories of a pre-exercise snack even 5 minutes prior to exercise enhances performance, assuming that:
(1) the athletes will be exercising at a pace they can maintain for more than 30 minutes and
(2) they can tolerate pre-exercise food. In one study, the subjects ate dinner and then the next morning exercised to exhaustion. They were able to exercise for only 109 minutes with no breakfast, but for 136 minutes with 400 calories of breakfast. That’s a 20% improvement (Schabort et al 1999)!



In another study, athletes biked hard for 45 minutes, and then sprinted as hard as they could for 15 minutes. When they ate a 180- or 270-calorie snack just 5 minutes before they exercised, they improved 10% in the last 15 minutes. They improved 20%when they had first eaten a meal 4 hours prior to the exercise, and then enjoyed the snack 5 minutes pre-exercise (Neufer et al. 1987). That is a significant improvement!



Another study looked at the importance of pre- exercise water and carbohydrates for exercise that lasted less than an hour. The athletes ate no breakfast, biked hard for 50 minutes and then sprinted for 10 minutes to the finish. They were able to: sprint 6%harder when they consumed adequate water versus minimal water; sprint 6%harder with adequate carbohydrates versus no carbohydrates and minimal water; and sprint 12%harder with a sports drink (adequate carbohydrates plus water) (Below et al. 1995). Fueling appropriately certainly enhances performance!



Solution: Athletes need to train their intestinal tracts to be able to tolerate pre-exercise food. They also need to plan their sports diet to accommodate their training. For example: athletes who exercise in the morning can plan to eat part of their breakfast (such as a banana) before the workout, and then afterwards refuel with the rest of their breakfast (such as a bagel and a yogurt); athletes who exercise at lunch could eat part of their lunch (half a sandwich) before the workout and then enjoy the rest of the lunch afterwards; for afternoon or after work sessions, athletes could eat a granola bar or some pretzels pre-exercise, and then refuel with chocolate milk.



Missing Link #6: Optimal Protein Intake

Some athletes eat too much protein (>2g/kg); others eat too little (<>

This amount of protein equates to more than 2.5 g protein per kilogram, and is excessive to the point some of the protein could be wisely traded for more carbohy- drates to better fuel the workouts. In comparison, a vegetarian athlete on a reducing diet could easily consume too little protein as a consequence of restricting food intake. A typical reducing diet might include these protein portions:

Too little protein contributes to poor recovery, muscle wasting, and suboptimal results from hard training. Solution: Athletes who have high or low protein intakes, or who are vegetarian, should consult with a sports dietitian. That nutrition professional can both assess the athlete’s personal protein requirements and teach the athlete how to translate grams of protein into an effective sports diet.

Missing Link #7: Iron to Prevent Fatigue from Anemia

Iron-deficiency anemia is common, particularly in females. Anemia causes needless fatigue and reduced performance. A survey of collegiate athletes found that 20%of female volleyball and basketball players were anemic, as were 50%of the soccer team. Anemia is particularly common among women who have heavy menstrual blood losses, but eat neither red meat nor iron-enriched breakfast cereal (Eichner 2001).

Solution: The athlete who feels needlessly tired should get a blood test (including serum ferritin) to diagnose iron deficiency anemia. To help prevent anemia, all athletes should strive to eat an iron-rich diet that includes red meat or iron-rich alternatives (dark- meat chicken or turkey, salmon, tuna), and iron-fortified cereals (such as Wheaties, Raisin Bran, Total). Including a source of vitamin C (orange juice, strawberries, broccoli, tomatoes) with each meal enhances iron absorption.

Missing Link #8: Post-exercise Recovery Food

At the end of a hard workout, athletes haven’t finished training until they have refueled! They should not sim- ply rush off to work or school, with “no time to eat” as the excuse. Muscle glycogen synthesis is twice as rapid if carbohydrate is consumed immediately after exercise, as opposed to waiting several hours (Ivy 2001).

Solution: Athletes need to plan ahead so they have recovery foods readily available. Even if time is limited, they should be able to refuel their muscles properly. “No time” is no excuse.

Missing Link #9: Carbohydrates Combined with Protein for Recovery Food

Recovery foods should offer a foundation of carbohydrates with protein as the accompaniment, or approximately 1.2–1.5g carbohydrate/kg body weight/hour and 0.4g protein/kg body weight/hour within the first hour after exhaustive exercise, and repeated doses every hour for 4–5 hours (Berardi et al. 2006; Ivy et al. 2002). Some popular choices for American athletes include yogurt, chocolate milk, cereal with milk, and pasta with meat sauce. Athletes need not buy engineered recovery foods unless they are preferred for convenience.

In a 10-week study of recreational body builders, those who consumed a protein-carbohydrate supple- ment both immediately before and right after the mid- afternoon strength training session gained about 1 kg more muscle and about 3kg more in strength (as measured by bench press), compared to the group who did not eat right before and after strength training (Cribb & Hayes 2006).

Eating for recovery can be initiated before exercise. That is, a pre-exercise yogurt gets digested into amino acids and glucose; those macronutrients are available to be put into use when the athlete stops exercising (Zachwieja 2002).

Athletes who train twice a day definitely need to rapidly refuel with a proper recovery diet. A 6-week study with collegiate swimmers reports that those who did two workouts (morning and afternoon) sprinted slower than those who swam only in the afternoon (Costill et al. 1991). Although no mention was made of diet, the decline in performance may have been related to the inadequate dietary patterns that are common among college students.

Solution: Exhausted athletes may not feel hungry for solid foods after a hard bout of exercise, but they might welcome a fruit smoothie (blenderized fruit with yogurt) or chocolate milk. Both contain carbohydrates to refuel, and protein to build/repair muscles and reduce muscle soreness.

Missing Link #10: Rest Days for Muscles to Refuel

Rest is an important part of a training program; muscles need time to refuel and heal. In one recovery study, subjects ran hard for about 16 kilometers on 3 consecutive days while eating a typical American diet that provided inadequate (50%) carbohydrates. By the third day, the athletes’ glycogen stores were low and the muscles felt tired (Costill et al. 1971). This study points out the importance of eating a carbohydrate-rich diet on a daily basis during periods of hard training, as well as the importance of days with little or no exercise. Depleted muscles may need more than 24 hours to replace glycogen stores.

Although rest days with little or no exercise enhance a training program, athletes who want to lose weight commonly hesitate to take a rest day; they fear they will “get fat”. These athletes need to understand: (1) On a rest day, they may feel just as hungry because the muscles need food to refuel. (2) They will gain (water) weight. For each 1g of glycogen, the muscles store about 3g of water. This water gets released during exercise; it is beneficial.

Solution: Athletes should schedule into their training program 1–2 rest days a week, and observe the benefits: better performance the day after a rest day.

Missing Link #11: Adequate Fluids

Athletes who maintain optimal hydration can train harder and perform better. For each 1%of body weight lost via sweat, the heart has to beat 3–5 more times per minute (Casa et al. 2000); this creates needless fatigue.

Solution: Athletes should be taught to monitor their urine to determine if they are adequately hydrated. Athletes who are well hydrated will need to urinate every 2–4 hours, and their urine will be a light color. Athletes who sweat heavily should learn how much sweat they lose (and thereby need to replace) during strenuous exercise. To learn their sweat rate, they simply need to weigh themselves without clothing before and after exercise. For each kilogram of sweat lost, they should drink at least 1.0–1.5 liters of fluid (American College of Sports Medicine 2007).

Missing Link #12: Sodium Before Exercise in the Heat

Research with trained cyclists reports that they rode 20 minutes longer to exhaustion (99 vs. 79 minutes) in 32°C heat when they drank a pre-ride beverage with 1000mg versus ∼150mg sodium. They consumed no fluids while riding (Sims et al. 2007).

Solution: Athletes who train and compete in the heat should consume salty foods pre-exercise. Sodium holds water in the body and reduces the risk of becoming dehydrated.

Missing Link #13: The Sports Dietitian

Serious athletes generally have a support crew that includes a coach, sports psychologist, medical doctor, physical therapist and massage therapist. But to their detriment, some fail to have a sports dietitian on their team.

Solution: Serious athletes who want to get the most from their training programs should meet with a nutrition professional to get a “nutrition check-up”. In the USA, athletes can use the referral network at www.SCANdpg.org to find a local registered dietitian who is a Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics (RD CSSD). This professional can help athletes to resolve struggles with “no time” to eat prop- erly, find solutions to intestinal distress related to pre-exercise food, attain the desired weight and per- cent body fat, and transform disordered eating into effective fueling. Conclusion All athletes can benefit from sports nutrition education that focuses on the benefits associated with consuming a proper sports diet. These benefits include better per- formance, desired body weight/percent fat, and faster recovery. With nutrition education, athletes can learn to make responsible food choices that support the rigors of their training programs and competitive events. Every athlete will always win with good nutrition.

References

American College of Sports Medicine (2007). ACSM position stand on exercise and fluid replacement. Med Sci Sports Exerc 39:377–90.

American College of Sports Medicine, American Dietetic Association, and Dietitians of Canada (2000). Joint position statement: nutrition and athletic performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc 32:2130–45.

Beals K, Manore M (2000). Behavioral, psychological, and physical char- acteristics of female athletes with subclinical eating disorders. Int J Sports Nutr Exerc Metab 10:128–43.

Below P, Mora-Rodriquez R, Gonzalez-Alonso J, Coyle E (1995). Fluid and carbohydrate ingestion independently improve performance during 1 hour of intense exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc 27:200–10.

Berardi JM, Price TB, Noreen EE, Lemon PW (2006). Postexercise muscle glycogen recovery enhanced with a carbohydrate-protein supplement. Med Sci Sports Exerc 38:1106–13.

Casa D, Armstrong L, Hillman S, Montain S, Reiff R, Rich B, Roberts W, Stone J (2000). National Athletic Trainers’ Association position statement: fluid replacement for athletes. J Athletic Training 35:212–24.

Costill D, Bowers R, Branam G, Sporks K (1971). Muscle glycogen utilization during prolonged exercise on successive days. J Appl Physiol 31:836.

Costill D, Thomas R, Robergs R, Pascoe D, Lambert C, Barr S, Fink W (1991). Adaptations to swimming training: influence of training volume. Med Sci Sports Exerc 23:371–7.

Cribb P, Hayes A (2006). Effects of supplement timing and resistance exer- cise on skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Med Sci Sports Exerc 38:1918–25.

Eichner R (2001). Anemia and blood boosting. Sports Science Exchange #81, Vol 14.

Horvath P, Eagen C, Fisher N, Leddy J, Pendergast D (2000). The effects of varying dietary fat on performance and metabolism in trained male and female runners. J Am Coll Nutr 19:52–60.

Ivy J, Goforth H, Damon B, McCauley T, Parsons E, Price T (2002). Early post- exercise muscle glycogen recovery is enhanced with a carbohydrate- protein supplement. J Appl Physiol 93:1337–44.

Ivy J (2001). Dietary strategies to promote glycogen synthesis after exercise. Can J Appl Physiol 26(Suppl):236–45.

Neufer P, Costill D, Flynn M, Kirwan J, Mitchell J, Houmard J (1987). Improvements in exercise performance: effects of carbohydrate feedings and diet. J Appl Physiol 62:983–8.

Schabort E, Bosch A, Welton S, Noakes T (1999). The effect of a preexercise meal on time to fatigue during prolonged cycling exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc 31:464–71.

Sims S, van Vliet L, Cotter J, Rehrer N (2007). Sodium loading aids fluid balance and reduces physiological strain of trained men exercising in the heat. Med Sci Sports Exerc 39:123–30.

Zachwieja JJ (2002). Protein: Power or Puffery? Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Available: http://www.gssiweb.com/Article_Detail.aspx? articleid = 338 [Date accessed: September 30, 2008]

Watch What You Say

Watch What You Say
By Nick Dixon
http://ezinearticles.com/?Youth-Sports-Coach---Watch-What-You-Say&id=2158337
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Volunteering to coach youth sports can be one of the most rewarding experiences in your life. It is a privilege to spend time teaching, coaching and mentoring youngsters in one of the most critical stages of their mental and physical development. Many kids do not have positive role models in their life. Many kids do not get the attention and the discipline that they need and desire. The main thing I want to discus today is the importance of thinking before you speak and the fact that your words greatly affect the self esteem of your players. Many coaches fail to remember that what a coach says can have long term positive or negative effects on a player. All youth coaches should remember these points regardless of which sport that they coach.

What you say can have long term positive or negative effects on a player. It is a coach's job and responsibility to see, identify, and correct bad player habits, mechanics and incorrect actions and behavior. Coaches should use an approach in such times that is constructive and that produces positive results. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a coach verbalizes displeasure when a player does something wrong as long as it is done professionally and compassionately. What is most important is that if you tell a player when something is done wrong, always make a point to tell that player as soon as possible positive feedback praising something that the player does right.

Maintaining a balance between correction and praising is one of the greatest attributes of a good youth coach. Coaches should always take a moment and think before they speak what is on their mind. Sometimes coaches say something that they wish many times over, that they had not. Once you say something to a player, the damage is done. Regardless of what you do or say, that child will always remember the hurt and embarrassment. Words of praise build confidence and self esteem. A coach's words of praise and kindness are sometimes the only positive words a player hears outside of school and church.

3 Important Points to remember:

1. Praise Every Player at Least Once Every Day - Kids look up to you. They hear every word that you say. They take every word that you say to the "heart". Always strive to find a reason to praise every player at least once or more during every game or practice. Don't make it false praise because kids are too smart. They know when you are sincere or not sincere in your praise.

2. Maintain a Healthy Balance - Make sure that when you correct a player for poor execution of a skill, drill or action, that you praise that player later when a job is well done. If all the kid hears are negative comments one right after another, that kids is going to eventually "tune you out". Keep a healthy balance between your words of correction and your words of praise. Maintaining a positive attitude and a positive approach when correcting bad execution requires a high level of patience. Patience is another valuable attribute of good youth sports coaches.

3. Maintain Your Composure - Think Before You Speak - You can never take words back. Once they are said, they are said! Take a minute to think before you speak when you are irritated and displeased. Words spoken out of anger often come out wrong and have the opposite effect on a player or team than you wished for. If you want your team to play and perform with composure then you must be an example or role model. If you "lose it" every time something goes bad then why should your players not do the same. Be calm and composed at all times. Players and teams emulate the behavior of their coach. If he is calm and collected when the pressure is on, they will tend to be also.